Marriott International reported a surge in global demand during the first quarter of 2022, with the company's global average daily rate (ADR) for March surpassing March 2019 levels by 5 per cent, according to CEO Tony Capuano.
During an earnings summary call this week, Capuano said Covid-19 is still impacting the business to various degrees, but pent-up demand is encouraging.
“Corporate demand is still lagging leisure but, as greater numbers of employees return to the office, demand has been rapidly improving,” he said.
In Europe, RevPAR saw a 400 per cent increase on the previous year to $64, and ADR for the region rose 44.6 per cent to $163.80.
Despite the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, Capuano said cross-border demand in the region is rising as more countries remove or reduce travel restrictions. Ahead of the high season, he said bookings across Europe have accelerated.
“We’re keeping a close eye on trends in Europe but, outside of Russia, the war on Ukraine has not yet impacted demand… cancellations have been minimal,” he said.
The company has closed its corporate offices in Russia and paused all future hotel development and new hotel openings. There are currently 23 hotels open in the country, but occupancy is “modest”.
Expressing concern for the situation in Ukraine, Capuano praised his teams' aid efforts in the region, where properties in neighbouring countries are housing refugees, and added the company will “continue to evaluate operations in Russia, which represented well under 1 per cent of global fees in 2019”.
Throughout the quarter, Marriott opened 16 hotels in Europe including The Madrid EDITION, Courtyard Paris Charles de Gaulle and Four Points by Sheraton Porto.
Globally, RevPAR for the quarter increased 96.5 per cent to US$89, compared to Q1 2021. The company's systemwide occupancy rate was 54.5 per cent for the quarter, while first-quarter ADR rose 36.5 per cent, to $163.60.
Marriott’s worldwide development pipeline totalled nearly 2,900 properties at the end of Q1 2022, including 244 properties – or 40,455 rooms – in Europe.